The present invention relates to a portable bioelectrical impedance measuring instrument for measuring an electric impedance using four electrodes for measuring body fat occupancy ratio, blood pressure, pulse rate and the like.
A conventional portable body fat monitor is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-2164. This body fat monitor has a display and an operator unit formed on the face of a main body. Four measurement electrodes are formed in pairs on the back of the main body. Each pair of measurement electrodes is touched with one finger of the right or left hand.
Namco Ltd. has put a body fat monitor, which looks like a pocket game machine, on the market. This monitor has one electrode formed on both sides of a main body.
Yamato Scale Co., Ltd. has marketed portable body fat monitors named xe2x80x9cPoke-navixe2x80x9d and xe2x80x9cPoke-minixe2x80x9d having electrodes formed on the upper left and right parts of the face and back of a main body.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-700092 discloses a portable body fat monitor having electrodes formed on the top and bottom of a card.
Casio Computer Co., Ltd. is selling a blood pressure monitor that has two electrodes and a photoelectric sensor formed on a main body shaped like an elliptic cylinder.
Additionally, an electronic pulsimeter having a photoelectric sensor formed on a main body shaped like an elliptic cylinder has made its debut.
The body fat monitor disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-2164 suffers from poor maneuverability. This is because the main body must be turned inside out in order to touch the electrodes with fingers for the purpose of measuring a body fat occupancy ratio, and then turned back after completion of measurement. Moreover, although the four measurement electrodes are formed on the back, each pair of electrodes must be touched with one finger of the right or left hand. The spacing between each pair of electrodes is therefore so narrow that precision measurement is compromised.
The body fat monitor marketed by Namco Ltd. suffers from the same drawback, i.e., lack of precision, as the body fat monitor described in Utility Model Publication 5-2164. The monitor is small enough to be enclosed in one hand. When the monitor is held with both hands for measurement, the majorities of the fingers of the right and left hands touch each other, leading to a considerably large error in measurement.
The body fat monitor sold by Yamato Scale Co., Ltd. also suffers from poor maneuverability. An operator switch must be pressed while the electrodes are touched with the fingers, so the fingers must be largely separated from one another or the main body must be held in an awkward manner.
The monitor disclosed in the Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 11-70092 has the electrodes distributed to the four corners of the monitor. Consequently, a lengthy connection cord is needed. The monitor is therefore susceptible to extraneous electric noises or the like.
The Casio blood pressure monitor and the electronic pulsimeter each have only a single function.
There exists a need for a multi-function portable bioelectrical impedance measuring instrument that provides accurate measurements and is easy to operate.
An advantage of the present invention is a portable impedance measuring instrument for monitoring body fat, blood pressure, and pulse rate, the instrument having electrodes arranged so that the instrument is easily operated by a user, thereby facilitating accurate measurements.
Additional advantages and other features of the present invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from the practice of the invention. The advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained as particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
According to the present invention, the foregoing and other advantages are achieved in part by a portable bioelectrical impedance measuring instrument comprising a main body, a first pair of electrodes on a face of the main body, a second pair of electrodes on a back side of the main body opposite the face, and an operator unit and display unit on the face. The instrument is small enough to be held in the palm of one hand, while the electrodes on the face of the main body are touched with fingers of the other hand. Thus, a user can hold the instrument easily and in a stable manner, leading to increased measurement precision.
Another aspect of the present invention is a portable bioelectrical impedance measuring instrument comprising a main body, a first pair of electrodes on a face of the main body, a second pair of electrodes on opposing sides of the main body, and an operator unit and display on the face. The instrument is sized to be held in the palm of one hand, while the electrodes on the face of the main body are touched with fingers of the other hand. Thus, a user can hold the instrument easily and in a stable manner, leading to increased measurement precision.
A still further aspect of the present invention is a portable bioelectrical impedance measuring instrument comprising a main body, two pairs of electrodes on a pair of opposing sides of the main body, and an operator unit and display on a face of the main body. The instrument is sized to be held in the palm of one hand. A bioelectrical impedance is accurately measured by the four electrodes to monitor body fat occupancy ratio, pulse rate, blood pressure or the like while the instrument is held in one hand.
Additional advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in this art from the following detailed description, wherein only the preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown and described, simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated for carrying out the present invention. As will be realized, the present invention is capable of other and different embodiments, and its several details are capable of modifications in various obvious respects, all without departing from the invention. Accordingly, the drawings and description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive.